That kind of news is a like punch in the stomach - you must have felt like you had the wind knocked out of you. No wonder your head is spinning. So sorry for your loss - sounds like Sharon was a gem. Condolences.

Thanks everyone for your condolences. It turns out she died of pneumonia. She'd been to a doctor who thought it was bronchitis. I didn't realize pneumonia could be fatal to someone my age in otherwise good health without presenting as an extreme, obvious illness. Very sad.

I got pneumonia this year despite having had the vaccines. It wasn't obvious to the doctor, but fortunately he ordered tests. By the time I got home the x-ray came back as positive for it. Glad I didn't have to find out if I could get well on my own. Really sorry about your friend.

Thanks, Gail. It's a reminder that "cold" symptoms shouldn't be ignored if they are serious or last too long. My friend had symptoms for two weeks and saw a doctor but I don't think she'd been sick in bed. As an Ironman triathlete, she could put up with a lot of physical discomfort and wouldn't likely complain after a doctor had given it a relatively benign label.